Acute care service performance during winter: Report from the winter SAMBA 2020 national audit of acute care

Abstract

The Winter Society for Acute Medicine Benchmarking Audit (SAMBA) provides the first comparison of performance within acute medicine against clinical quality indicators during winter, a time of increased pressure and demand on acute services. 105 hospitals participated in Winter SAMBA, collecting data over 24-hours on 30th January 2020. 5626 patients were included. Participating units saw a median of 48 patients (range 13-131). Comparison between Winter SAMBA and SAMBA19 found less patients had an early warning score within 30 minutes during winter (74.3% vs 78.9%) and less were seen by a clinical decision maker within four hours (84.9% vs 87.9%). Unplanned admissions represented a higher proportion of workload (92.5% vs 90.1%). Patients were more likely to have a NEWS2 score of 3 or higher (30.1% vs 25.7%). Performance is poorer in winter, and patients are more unwell, needing prompt treatment. Services should ensure high quality care can be maintained through times of increased pressure, including winter.